The NIA detained three people and recovered gold biscuits weighing 2kg today, and claimed to have busted an inter-state gang of conmen who allegedly cheated many people on the pretext of exchanging fake Indian currency notes (FICN) and smuggled gold.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said it had handed over Rashid Khan (40), Gagan K Vyas (49) and Iqbal Ahmad Ansari to Rajasthan Police after they were nabbed from Dholpur.

The trio, who were allegedly negotiating with a Bangladeshi FICN smuggler, Darul Sheikh, were apprehended during the agency's ongoing probe into an FICN racket case emerging from the Malda area of West Bengal, along the India- Bangladesh border.

NIA teams subsequently carried out multiple searches in Mumbai and Kolhapur as part of the morning operation and recovered 20 gold biscuits of 100 grams each, the agency said.

As per initial probe, the central probe agency said it came to light that "an inter-state gang had been active since long in the states of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Delhi, and West Bengal".

They primarily lured people on the pretext of exchanging high-quality FICN or unbilled gold biscuits at attractive rates.

They either looted their targets directly or carried out fake police raids with the help of other associates.

The NIA said the gullible targets of these conmen used to leave their money behind and could not even lodge police complaints.

The investigation is on to ascertain more about the three and their alleged accomplices, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)